Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1887-02-24
NERvY LITTLE jim.


NERvY LITTLE jim.
BeDArkabae Coolnase - Dsmlnutivo q.
cret-ServSos Detective.
We had in the Secret-Service Bureau
In 1866 detective named James Red
field. who was known to all of us by
the sobriquet of Little Jim" He was
only five feet one inch high, weighed
ninety-sevcn pounds, and every body
who looked at him made mental cal.
culation that he would die of consump-
ton inside of six weeks. Notwith-
standing his appearance of i'll health
he was tough as a hickory knot, and
man with more nerve never lived.
After the close of the war q lot of
desperate fellows had their headauar-
tiers in Arkansas and the Indian Terri
tory. and when complaints of counter
feiting began to come in three of us
were sent out there to work up ease.
We got on to the gang at Van Buren,.
and in the course of fortnight visited
Fort Smith, Muscogee. Shawneetown
and Tahlequah. We picked up a couple
of counterfeiters and sent them to Fort
Smith, and then ran across a couple OF
PinkertOn men who were in pursuit OF
fellow known as Bloody Jim Baker.
He was a man-killer, stage robber.
hOrse-thief and all else that was bad,
and the officers had followed him from
the neighborlood of Clinton, No..
where he had committed robbery and
murder. If remember Alright, how.
ever. he was wanted on q charge back
of that-an attempt to rob an express
car near Hannibal, and the numbering
of the messenger.
When we met the Pinkerton men
they had located Baker in lone cabin
in the mountains, near ShawneetOwn.
and had been lying in wait for him for
week. He was well-armed. known to
be desperate, and the probability is tina,
they had not recklessly exposed them
selves. They were in hopes he would
visit the town. but he had plenty OF
provisions, and refused to come out. Ii
was not for us to mix up in the affair,
and we should never have even heard
the particulars but for quarrel be-
tween Little Jim and one of the Pinker.
ton men. Both had been drinking, and
Jim charged the man with cowardice in
not making the arrest. Words were
leading to blows when we separated
them, and recall how the Pinkerton
man, his face flushed and his fist IN the
air, exclaimed:
1.-The whole secret-service force OF
pap-suckers couldn't arrest one side OF
such man as Bloody Baker!''
The row occurred in the evening. Al
daylight next morning. before any OF
us were astir, little Jim mounted s
mule and rode to within half mile OF
Bakers cabin. What followed heard
from Bakers own lips, and he woulG
have no reason to lie about it. Having
nothing in his hand but a switch, on,
little man walked straight up the patti
to the house. Baker saw him coming
and showed rifle out of loOp-hOle and
ordered him to halt.
HALT be hangedr' replied Redfield.
as he kept on his way, and his display
of recklessness prevented the outlaw
from shooting. He walked straight MP
to the door, pounded on it with his Inst
and called out:
"You, Baker, open this door. I've
come for your
''Who are your
"A detective come to arrest your
"Skip, or I'll liIl your
''You daren't kill anybody. Open
the door and stop this fooling. as /
have no time to loser
''Well, SIR" said Baker to me, Il
fell into Il tremble, lost my sand and
the first thing opened the door. He
came in, sat down, told me to go ahead
with the breakfast, and I'll be hanged
if didn't do it and if We didn't eat to-
gether. When we were through he
handcuffed ME to his left wrist, and
like a fool walked into town with him
and was turned over to the PinkertOn
men,"
'You could have killed him. OBJ
served.
"Why, could have picked him mp
and squeezed the life out of him with
one hand, but the internal GOODNESS Of
the little rat unnerved me-"
When Little Jim brought him into
Shawneetown we were all at the post
Office. He walked straight up to the
Pinkerton men. who were rubbing their
eyes in amazement, and. unlocking the
handcuff from his wrist, placidly re-
marked:
Here's your Bloody Jim, and You'd
better be little careful of him. He
might bite PinkertOn man!'-Cor.
Detroit Free Press.
Lack Of Confidence.
Colonel Yerger was dancing his little